During the late 1600s, author Charles Perrault produced works of literature that were read to us as children: fairy tales. Perrault utilized fairy tales as a way to communicate what he perceived to be as sound advice to his audience. Two of Perrault’s fairy tales, variations of the well-known Cinderella, are titled “The Little Glass Slipper” and “Donkeyskin.” Both variations capture a common moral associated with Cinderella stories that those who are good-hearted will be rewarded. However, can Perrault’s versions of Cinderella positively impact today’s youth as it did (assuming) in the late 1600s? With consideration of the many relatively recent advancements in women’s rights, Perrault’s “The Little Glass Slipper” and “Donkeyskin” conflict …show more content…
Rather, Perrault writes the story in a way that suggests Cinderella speaking to her father is an act of defiance. This contributes to Cinderella’s emotional development.
Both fairy tales utilize Cinderella to portray what it means to be a good women. As the “The Little Glass Slipper” continues, Perrault continues to develop his idea of what Cinderella should portray. It is easy to see that Cinderella is kind, patient, and respectful. She is, however, haunted by what makes us all human: self-worth, self-esteem, and greed. When Cinderella’s step-sisters ask her if she would like to go to the ball, Cinderella replies “...it is not for such as I am to go to a place.” Class hierarchy greatly divided civilizations in the 17th century; everyone was taught to “know their place.” This kind of segregation can have long-lasting effects on children’s self-worth and self-esteem. If Cinderella were to belong to high nobility, Perrault, in contradiction to himself, summons an image of a woman who is not satisfied with her new found possessions. Her fairy godmother produces a gold coach and six horses. Eyeing the absence of a coachmen, Cinderella is quick to grab a rat. She not only gets the coachman but six footmen as well. Cinderella then notices her “nasty rags” and asks her godmother if she must wear such atrocities. Cinderella should have been grateful for the help; instead she asked for more. Perrault’s “Donkeyskin” similarly emphasises the same qualities. This is evident in
Perrault’s version is the most well-known, for the glass slippers and pumpkin carriage. And the one with the most modern interpretations. While the Brother Grimm’s version reads more like a short horror story than a children 's fairytale. My version is a combination of both. Mostly based on Perrault yet I’ve incorporated some of the active personality of the Grimm 's protagonist besides to some violent elements which gives it a Grimm’s vibe. While researching my fairy tale I was taken back to the time when I’d read the tale, recalling how I didn’t question her submissive nature. I accepted that it should be this way and although my eyes would become teary, the younger version of me couldn’t see any way out of the situation other than marrying the prince.I have completely reimagined Cinderella.
In her article, “Cinderella: Not So Morally Superior,” Elisabeth Panttaja illustrates the important role of parents in a childhood. She talks about the importance the mother plays in all versions of Cinderella as well as evidence showing what lack of parenthood does to children. Panttaja claims by way of the Grimms Brothers version of Cinderella and how each mother wants to guarantee a bright and happy future for their daughters by marrying them off to the prince. The similarities between the wanting of Cinderella and the stepsisters married- and doing anything to get it- contradicts the idea that Cinderella and her mother were morally superior, or different at all, from the stepmother and sisters.
The Disney version of the story, Cinderella, illustrates a different moral than that of the original story. This story believes an ideal child should do what they are told and follow directions and in the end they will reap the rewards. In this story, Cinderella’s mother dies and her father remarries to a woman who has two daughters. While the daughters are pampered, Cinderella must work to keep the house from falling into disrepair. She befriends the animals and they help her to get ready to go to the ball by finishing her chores and making her a dress. When the evil stepsisters discover the dress they become furious because the mice used trimming from their clothing when making the dress. In revenge, the stepsisters rip the dress, leaving Cinderella out of options and out of hope. Just as Cinderella is about to give up, her fairy godmother appears and with a wave of magic creates a dress and turns a pumpkin and the mice into a horse and carriage. The only problem is that everything will turn back to what it was beforehand at midnight. Cinderella and the Prince fall in love at the ball but she must quickly leave because the
A lot of the fairy tale stories that we have seen as young adults and even as adults are original folk tale stories that have been modified and rewritten to accommodate our new cultures. Cinderella happens to be one of these stories that have been changed over the years. There are many different versions of Cinderella, an African Cinderella, a Hungarian Cinderella and even a Chinese version. All of the Cinderella’s are similar in plot, but the author dictates the story’s theme based on the people whom he is writing for which completely changes the story’s tone, mood and other elements. While Perrault's version stresses the values and materialistic worries of his middle-class audience, Grimm’s' focus is on the harsh realities of life
Have you ever had a dark and gloomy day? Imagine having that feeling every single day. The Grimm’s Cinderella was written in 1812. 1812 was one of the harshest years for America. An event that formed it was the war against Great Britain and the United States. Not only was there a war, but there was also a series of disastrous harvests. Taxes got higher, and more than twenty people who were involved with a Luddite Act were hung. In 1812, there was also the only assassination of a prime minister, who was shot dead in the House of Commons. The Grimm Brothers have put the dark times of 1812 into their stories. Some of their stories contain violence, child abuse, and wicked mothers. They came up with these types of stories after their father died, and when they struggled out of school. That gave them enough time to research and put together a collection of folk tales. Now you can see why the Grimm’s Cinderella was dark and gloomy. Although the plot stayed the same, over the years, the story did get lighter. Disney’s Cinderella came out in 1950. In 1950, learning information was not by fear, but by engaging happiness. Disney’s Cinderella transforms the Grimm’s Cinderella into a happier atmosphere. While some similarities between Disney’s Cinderella and Grimm’s Cinderella are noticeable, the differences are pronounced, especially when referring to the slippers, her father, and the ball.
The Grimm Brothers version of Cinderella is a written down oral story that people passed down from generation to generation, meant to teach a lesson about piety and good behavior. Before the Grimm Brothers ever wrote it down, the story had been told several times by memory. It is thus not surprising that the descriptions of certain events in the story, such as the way Cinderella went to the Ball, are lacking in details. It is obvious that these parts of the story are unimportant to the overall message of the story. Instead, it focuses on the piety of Cinderella and the wickedness of the step-sisters. Through the events of the story, it becomes obvious that the goodness of Cinderella is justly rewarded, and that
In "Cinderella" by Charles Perrault, the story depicts an imaginative fairytale through the hardships of a mistreated daughter and the magic of a fairy; in essence, Cinderella demonstrates that focusing on materialism is more important and more effective other than working up the path to majesty. Cinderella is a character who is often mistreated by her stepmother and god sisters. Bearing unsuitable personalities, they treat her harshly, leaving all of the chores to her. However, she admits that her tattered clothes are not worthy of a formal event, and continues to be belittled by her stepsisters. Portrayed with low self-esteem and insecurity, she does not respond harshly to their cruel insults. As a result, the main character relies on
The three versions of Cinderella that I am going to compare, and contrast is the Perrault, Grimm, and Lee’s. All the stories are similar, but they also have many differences as well. Many of the Cinderella stories were written in different time periods and all the stories fall back to the original version of Cinderella, where Cinderella has an evil stepmother, marries a wealthy man, and has two stepsisters.
Original fairy tales restrict the opportunities of female protagonists, allowing their fate to be controlled by male characters and society’s restrictive expectations of women. Authors such as Perrault of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ were quick to provide advice to their suggestible female readers in moral that girls should not try to drift from the path that society has laid out for them. Thus they became ‘parables of instruction’ (Carter) to indoctrinate the next generation in the values of a patriarchal society. Fairy tales of this time consistently remind us that those of the female sex will not prosper if they choose to ignore and defy the social constructs. Pre 1900s, the roles of women were entirely predetermined. A clear female dichotomy was established portraying them as either ‘the virgin’ or ‘the whore’. Stereotypical perceptions of women reduced them to biological functions and stated that they should acquire the role of wife and mother – objectified to such an extent where they were essentially their male counterpart’s possession. Both authors scorn the importance placed on domesticity and conformity, stressing the vital nature of being able to choose and uncover the consequences of societal ignorance. Carter highlights to her literary audience a passive generation of women who face the inability to vocalise their thoughts and opinions in the context of oppressive patriarchy. Within her work ‘The Company of Wolves’ “The
Adults realize that despite Cinderella’s charismatic traits, Cinderella’s behaviour in Perrault’s tale is not acceptable for today’s modern western woman.
The story of Cinderella has become a classic fairy tale, known around the world, and past down from generation to generation. Yet, over the years, the story has been rewritten to better relate to different cultures. While some things never change, authors still manage to convey different messages by making the story their own. This can be clearly seen when the Grimm brothers version of Cinderella is compared to Charles Perrault’s version of Cinderella. While the core of the story does not change, the moral, tone, and “magical” aspects of the two stories are clearly shaped by the different cultures in which they were written in.
In “Cinderella”, a woman’s worth is identified with her chastity. As Cinderella’s glass slipper is the most famous symbol in “Cinderella”, it is also the most sexist. In Perrault’s version, the prince uses the glass slipper as the only proof that Cinderella was truly the princess he danced with at the ball (Lecture Notes, 5/11/17). Further analysis can interpret the glass slipper as a sexual symbol, like the “key in the lock” (Lecture 5/11/17). Since Perrault specifically made it a glass slipper, its brittleness and fragility can be an analogy to a woman’s virtue. During Perrault’s time, a woman’s virtue is so sacred to men, that one’s future would be shattered like glass if their reputation is tainted. This qualifies as an antifeminist symbol as it places much pressure to keep one’s virtue because men have said it would devalue her.
In a society unbridled with double standards and set views about women, one may wonder the origins of such beliefs. It might come as a surprise that these ideals and standards are embedded and have been for centuries in the beloved fairy tales we enjoyed reading as kids. In her analytical essay, “To Spin a Yarn: The Female Voice in Folklore and Fairy Tales”, Karen Rowe argues that fairy tales present “cultural norms which exalt passivity, dependency, and self-sacrifice as a female’s cardinal virtues.” Rowe presents an excellent point, which can be supported by versions of the cult classics, “Cinderella” and “Snow White”. Charles Perrault’s “ The Little Glass Slipper” and the Brothers Grimm’s “ Snow White” exemplify the beliefs that
Differences are in Perrault’s version he stresses the values and materialistic worries of the middle-class while Grimm’s version focus on harsh realities of life associated with the peasant culture. Also, Grimm’s version the help that Cinderella gets do not come from the fairy god-mother but the wishing tree that grows on her mother grave; stepsisters try to trick the prince by cutting off parts of their feet in order to get the slippers and not like other versions by just simply trying the shoe on. Another is the prince is alerted by two pigeons who peck out the stepsisters eyes, and also in the Grimm’s version the prince get tricked twice but spared by the birds. In which this lowers the prince’s status and he seems less heroic, and raising Cinderella’s status as a strong-willed individuals. Brothers Grimm portrays Cinderella as a headstrong orphan who becomes a heroine by standing up for herself even though it may result in punishment in which is completely different from the other versions because the prince try to find Cinderella and become the heroic person. Also, the writing style is different which completely modifies the tale.
Cinderella is a fairytale for children that displayed love, loss and miracles; however, when it is further analyzed, it has a deeper meaning. Cinderella is a story about a young girl who became a servant in her own home after her father remarried a malicious woman with two spoiled daughters. She was humiliated and abused yet she remained gentle and kind. She received help from her fairy godmother to go to the prince’s ball after her stepmother rejected her proposal. Cinderella and the Prince fell madly in love but she had to leave at twelve o’clock and forgot to tell him her name but she left her glass slipper behind. He sent his servants to find her and Cinderella was the only maiden in the kingdom to fit into the shoes. She